Wisconsin 7th District Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany (left) and 8th District Republican U.S. Rep. Tony Wied held an over-the-phone town hall Monday evening. (Tiffany image: Official congressional photo; Wied image: WisEye screenshot. Wisconsin Examiner photo illustration.)
U.S Rep. Tony Wied defended President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s work inside the Trump administration Monday evening during his first town hall, which was hosted by phone.
Wied, who represents Green Bay and other parts of northeast Wisconsin, scheduled the call after GOP congressional leaders told members to avoid in-person town halls. The guidance came after several lawmakers, including Wisconsin U.S. Reps. Glenn Grothman and Scott Fitzgerald, were met with backlash at in-person town halls because of Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project.
The call lasted a little less than an hour. Wied was joined by U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who helped answer questions from callers.
A few poll questions were asked during the call, with participants answering using their keypad. The first question was “Do you believe the federal government spends too much taxpayer money?” The results were shared on the call, with 43% of callers answering “yes” and 57% answering “no.” Another question asked was, “Do you believe men should be allowed to participate in women’s sports?” No results were shared.
While Wied wasn’t met with the pushback his colleagues had, perhaps because of the controlled nature of a telecall, a handful of callers expressed worries about the potential for cuts to a number of federal programs and asked where Wied stood on the issues. He mostly defended the actions of Trump, Republicans and Musk.
A nurse practitioner asked Wied about his position on Medicaid and Medicare. Questions about Medicaid cuts have been circulating and creating anxiety among many Wisconsinites who rely on the program. Trump has said he won’t cut the programs — or Social Security — but a recent report from the Congressional Budget Office found that lawmakers can’t meet their goal of cutting $880 billion without significant cuts to Medicaid.
“A lot of my patients rely on [Medicaid and Medicare]. My parents are on Medicaid, and I’m sure both of your parents are also on Medicare. What are your plans as far as trying to save it?” the caller asked. “Lots of rumors going around that there’s going to be $800 billion that will need to be cut over the next decade, and while Trump says that he won’t be touching Medicare or Medicaid, there’s serious concerns about where that money will come from.”
Wied and Tiffany said they want to protect Medicaid, but lawmakers will be looking for savings, including by potentially establishing work requirements for the program and keeping “illegal immigrants” from accessing the program.
Tiffany said there are too many able-bodied adults on Medicaid and rhetorically asked if “we want them getting help there from the federal government, from you, the taxpayer?” He implied that people should get a job so they can get insurance through their employer. “The second thing is illegal immigrants.”
Medicaid is funded partially with federal funds and partially with state funds, and approximately two-thirds of Medicaid recipients are working. Undocumented immigrants are already not eligible for federal Medicaid, though some states have expanded access using state funds, including California, which recently expanded its Medicaid program to cover all residents regardless of immigration status.
Tiffany said that “if we have too many people that are on the program via waste, fraud and abuse, it jeopardizes the program. What we want to do is protect and save Medicaid for the future so people can count on it.”
Wied said the government needs to be “prudent” and looking at the programs is part of getting rid of “bureaucratic waste, fraud and abuse,” and said Musk is helping with that.
“[Musk is] somebody that has a lot of experience working on big budgets and finding efficiencies, and his job is only to identify, then it comes down to the elected officials to make the decisions and ultimately do what they need to do again, to make sure that we keep these programs,” Wied said.
Another caller asked lawmakers whether they have a “red line” for where their support of Trump and Musk ends.
Wied said Musk is “designated as a special government employee” and “there’s no evidence that he or the team has unlawfully accessed or used any sensitive data.”
“If there is, I would certainly be concerned and make sure that I push back, but you know, the whole role of the Department of Government Efficiency is to streamline the government’s outdated and bloated systems,” Wied said.
Musk’s DOGE team has been seeking access to databases that store personal information of millions of Americans. The administration has also been muddying who is in charge of DOGE and downplaying Musk’s role by appointing a new “acting administrator,” though Trump recently said Musk is in charge of DOGE.
“Trump is in charge, he’s our president. He’s making the decisions. Elon Musk has not fired anybody,” Wied said. The comment is in line with what Musk has reportedly told other Republicans.
A Green Bay caller had concerns about benefits for veterans, given the Trump administration’s goal of cutting over 80,000 Department of Veterans Affairs employees, who provide health care and other services for millions of veterans.
“My son served in Afghanistan twice and uses the VA insurance. Our clinic here in Green Bay is awesome. I’ve been there a couple times with him, and he gets his surgery done there,” the caller said. “What are you going to do with 83,000 jobs that are cut in the VA, and where are the people that I love when they have their health care?”
The caller also added that tax cuts for the rich are “not worth it if it means hurting our veterans for they have served our country.”
Wied said he would “make sure that we continue to fund that at the appropriate level, so that people have the best care possible within the VA system.”
Some callers were supportive of Trump.
“There’s a lot of waste in government,” said one. “We have to cut back. We just have to — on the waste. I see people who are alcoholics, get early Social Security disability. I’ve worked with people who are overweight and get out and take early disability. I don’t think people realize the numbers of abuse and it takes from our Medicare, Medicaid, it takes from all of us.”
The caller added, “I’m middle class. I’ve worked hard all my life. We have to give President Trump a chance.”
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